Hand scouring device



1 .M. M. WILKINS HAND SCOURING DEVICE Feb. 23, 1937.

Filed July 18, 1936 y /VNTR ATTOR EY Patented Feb. 23, 1937 emrah stares ias'i'irrri orgies HAND SCOURING DEVICE v f Marion M. Wilkins, Brookline, Mass. Application July 18, 1936, Serial No. 91,296

' lClaims.

This invention relates to hand scouring devices for the housewife and more particularly to such devices made from soft or crushable abrasive material such as copper netting, steel wool and the like. y A disadvantage in the use of scouring devices of this nature when used in the form of a ball or pad is that there is no protection afforded against injury to the fingers and particularly the fingernails. While attempts have been made to give protection against injury these, so far as I am aware,Y either detract from the flexibility of the device thus lessening the usefulness of the pad for scouring the corners of pots and pans, or a common sheath is provided for all the fingers and they are not protected one from the other.

The principal object of the present invention is to provide individual protection for each nger used in the work of scouring while yet preserving the complete flexibility of the pad and permitting any nger or fingers to be used to work the abrasive material into a corner without Contact of the bare ngers one with another or with the scrubbing surface of the abrasive material.

To the accomplishment of this object and such o others as may hereinafter appear, as will readily 'be understood by those skilled in the art, the invention comprises the features and combinations of parts hereinafter described and then particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

The nature and scope of the invention will 'best be understood from a description of the preferred embodiment thereof illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which:

Figure 1 is a View of the scouring device in plan;

Fig. 2 is a view of the same in elevation;

Fig. 3 is a view of the pattern of one side of a finger sheath;

Fig. 4 is a View, in perspective, of a linger sheath before attachment to the wide walls of the glove member;

Fig. 5 is a view of the pattern of one side wall of the glove member; and

Fig. 6 is a transverse cross-sectional view of the scouring device.

In the embodiment of the invention illustrated in the drawing the scouring surface is shown as formed from two different abrasive materials using steel wool I0 for one half and copper netting I2 for the other half. These materials are so shaped that together they present a hollow shell I5. In the most convenient form of the invention, as illustrated, this shell is of greater length than width, it being understood that the two materials are joined along their meeting edges I4 as by stitching with wire or a similar tough strand. A lining IS of any suitable flexible material having suflicient strength is shaped to the hollow interior of the shell and the abrasive materials Ill and I2 are conveniently secured by criss-cross "stitching to this lining. The lining affords several advantages as will presently appear.

Attached by its edge I8 to the upper edge of the shell is what may be termed a glove member designated generally by 2). The glove member provides a separate finger sheath 22 -for each of the four fingers of the hand, these sheaths extending down into the hollow of the shell I5. It is requisite that the finger sheaths be so formed in the glove member that the fingers of the user may readily be slipped in and out without binding,`and that the material from which they are made, and the shape and the mode of attachment of the glove member of which they are a part, be such that the fingers are free to be moved anywhere within the shell to press upon any selected section of the abrasive material. It is requisite also that the material be suflciently soft to permit the fingers to be bent or closed upon the abrasive material as may in scouring differently shaped articles, all without danger of disrupting the scouring pad as by tearing the stitching securing the glove member to the shell.

Accordingly the glove member is preferably formed of a flexible fabric cut in such form as to function as a bellows at the open face of the shell I5 and having widely open or non-binding mouths for the nger sheaths. This may be accomplished by patterning the follows.

Each finger sheath 22 is made from the fabric, preferably one having a deep nap such as chenille that will feel soft against the fingers, by cutting two pieces 24 each having one rounded the finger tip and one pointed o-r V-shaped end 25. These two pieces are laid against each other nap inward and are stitched together in a manner similar to stitching the finger of a glove, the secure-ment leaving the two V-ends free however. The side walls 26 of the glove member each consist of a piece of fabric, preferably chenille, cut at its outer edge to fit one-half of the edge of the shell I5 and cut at its inner edge with four V-notches 28. Each finger sheath is attached to the two side walls of the glove member by turning its two free V-lips outward and stitching tol the edges of two opposite V-notches 28. After stitching the four finger sheaths intermediate the side walls, the side walls are turned down and the be found to be desirable glove member as end for two ends are closed by stitching, drawing them in until the peripheral length of the edge of the glove member 20 is about that of the edge of the shell l5. This edge is then stitched to the edge of the shell with the result that the glove member arches over the open side of the shell.

Thus the linger sheaths 22 depend freely into the shell with their open mouths exposed in a row along the longitudinal axis of the shell. The chosen width of the material for the side walls 26 is such that the sid-e wall of the glove member stands up somewhat above the level of the edge of the shell thus permitting it to act as a bellows when the lingers are sheathed and are moved or curled within the shell while exerting pressure on different parts of its surface during a scouring operation. The bellows top to the shell provides a give and take, as the lingers manipulate the shell in scrubbing, that eliminates strain on the seams and insures a long life to the scouring device.

It will be understood that the linger sheaths normally extend well down into the shell and can be pushed further down or pointed to any selected area within the shell by reason of the bellowed type of glove member. prevents the ends of the linger sheaths from becoming worn by direct contact with the metallic scouring material and it serves also as a backing for the abrasive material to maintain it in sheet form or to keep it from lumping. It is desirable, but not essential, that the linger sheaths 22 be of such length as to receive at least two joints of the longer lingers permitting a portion of the scouring surface to be bunched and seized for pushing into angl-es and corners of pots and pans.

It will be understood that when chenille is used for the glove member its nap will be exposed above the abrasive shell to give to the scouring device an attractive appearance, and in any event whatever material is used its face should be exposed for the same reason. The glove member may be produced in a variety of colors rto harmonize with the color scheme of the housewifes kitchen.

The shell bearing the abrasive material may be shaped as desired and linger sheaths for all four lingers are not essential but are desirable so that each linger and linger nail is protected. A further advantage of four linger sheaths is that the The lining IE5A device will cling better to the hand and a larger area of the abrasive surface may be pressed upon or grasped and used in scouring thus lightening the work.

While it is preferred to provide two kinds of abrasive material on a single scouring device because such a construction will avoid shifting from one to the other as need requires, those skilled in the art will recognize that the bellowed linger sheath feature is useful and d-esirable when the shell is formed of but a single abrasive material.

While the particulars of construction herein set forth are well suited to one form of the invention, it is not to be understood that these particulars are essential since they may be variously modilied within the skill of the artisan without departing from the true scope of the actual invention as dened by the following claims.

What is claimed as new, is:-

1. A hand scouring device comprising a hollow shell open on one side formed of crushable abrading material, a flexible lining for said shell, a glove like member of flexible material arched over the open side of the shell, the meeting edges of the lining, shell and glove like member being connected whereby a completely closed hollow member is provided, said glove like member having a plurality of individual separated flexible linger sheaths of a length greater than theV depth of the shell, opening outward through its arched over portion and ext-ending downward therefrom into the hollow of the shell, said linger sheaths being normally spaced from the edge of the opening in the shell permitting independent movement of each sheath within the shell.

2. A hand scouring device comprising a hollow abrading pad open on one side, combined with a flexible glove member enclosing said open side, said glove member consisting of a plurality of separated liexible linger sheaths extending downward into the hollow of the pad and a downturned skirt forming a wall surrounding said sheaths, said wall having its edge secured to the edge of the pad and forming a bellows member above the open side of the pad permitting unrestrained movement of said linger sheaths within the hollow of the pad.

MARION M. WILKINS. 

